Lisa's Journal

I have this quote hanging in my office. It’s true, how life takes us to places we might never anticipate. If I told you how often I’ve moved in my life, it would make your head spin. From Texas to Colorado to Connecticut to Florida to Virginia and more – our family has moved quite a bit. But strangely, I don’t have that feeling of dread about it, thankful to finally have rooted in one place and shaking my head about all the various homes and locations. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

I’ve always been a sort of nomad, taking in each place with fresh eyes and looking at it as a new adventure. After all, I’ve been traveling internationally since I was 15, so the call to explore has been strong. I feel at home in new places very fast, and I try to not hold on to bricks and mortar as my safety and strength. Where my family is, I am home.

And after all my travels, family’s the one true thing that never changes. Change is never been as hard for me as some people. I embrace change, and welcome it into my life. I’ve gone from red hair to brunette to blond, because it’s fun and different and I can always go back to what works. I think that’s why the idea of these boots intrigued me so. The idea of having a boot that’s comfortable and broken in, but having tops that are interchangeable, keeps it interesting and I can vary the look with my moods.

Being forced to step outside of your comfort zone, either traveling to a new place or trying on something new or being creative with your own design and fashion – it grows you, and helps you discover who you are. I think without change, we rot, and I’m a big believer of moving forward at all costs.

When my hands are in range of a jacket or blouse, my hand instinctively reaches out to feel the fabric. Run its fibers between my fingers. I like to bury myself in the richness and feel the silk and the way it slides. It’s as if these items have a story to tell, and I am the willing listener.

Touch connects you, and gives you comfort. There’s a reason children cling to blankets and stuffed animals – it makes them feel comforted in a way that words cannot. And when I hold my son in my arms, he rubs my arm or my shirt because it’s a feeling of love, and warmth, and few other senses give such a sense of peace.

When you touch something, you can also hear its story. Whether you are running your hands over a scar or holding a piece of dry, brittle earth, there’s a deeper meaning. Once I got leather samples from one of our factories and I wasn’t happy with the dry, brittle feel of it. It wasn’t bad leather, but like skin it needed to be touched. It needed the oils of my hands massaging love into its fibers. And after a bit, it gave in. It softened and became more pliable. I kept that leather, and was reminded how much the simple act of touch can change things.

“When you launch in a rocket, you're not really flying that rocket. You're just sort of hanging on." - Michael P. Anderson

Starting my own company was quite an adventure. After all, I’m just a small-town girl from Texas. What if my vision of a boot line failed? What if this concept I had didn’t take off? What if I can’t make it, and I disappoint all the people that had confidence in my dreams? I’m not a celebrity with a built-in market. I’m just one who happens to have big ideas!

When I was at Italy’s leather fair for the first time, I shook hands with designers from amazing companies including Tory Burch, Michael Kors, Via Spiga and others... I couldn’t believe that I was suddenly in step with those whom I had admired. My designer, Tonya, is extremely talented and well-connected, and at that moment I felt that the rocket had already ignited and I had no idea how high it would soar.

The night before I flew to Las Vegas for our first big trade show, I had a dream. I was sitting in my father’s large white pick-up truck, and he turned directly to me and told me to buckle up. “It’s time to go,” he said with a wink as he shot out the driveway and toward a towering mountain. I woke up and knew that this was my company. This was my life. This is what I was mean to do. And yet there was a great deal of fear in launching something new and different. There was a shift from paper to reality – from an idea on a cocktail napkin to a real company, with designers and factories and samples that I can touch. And now, when I now speak of Lisa Lecroy, it’s in my very bones. And I know that there’s a higher force driving, and I do my best to simply hang on.

“To succeed it is necessary to accept the world as it is and rise above it.” - Michael Korda

It’s challenging to break into the footwear industry. It’s an old, established concept and sometimes hard to introduce new ideas. How can I rise to the challenge? How can I convince the general public that interchangeable boots can liven up their wardrobe, stretch their finances, and create a completely new way of looking at boots? But then I realized that I don’t have to sell the business. I just have to put women into these boots. They will sell themselves.

I’ve always loved the story of David and Goliath. The concept of the young boy challenging the giant, when everyone else thought him a fool. Dressed in a tunic as opposed to battle armor, young David carried a shepherd’s staff, a slingshot, and a pouch of stones. He faced a man over nine feet tall, who cursed and slung insults and stood protected by metal and strength. And yet David scratched his head, wondering who this man was that dared to defy the people of God. I’ve always stood on the sidelines cheering, like “you go, David!” But sometimes I feel small and weak, with an industry towering over me with established rules and patterns. I get the feeling of only having stones and no armor.

And yet with the strength of my faith, and the protection that comes from knowing I’m following my dreams, I know I can conquer this giant. I know I can rise to the challenge, and when my line gets bumped in the production line in an overseas factory or samples don’t arrive on time or any other litany of challenges appear, I know somehow it will work out. Sometimes you just have to step out on faith, and let the slingshot do the rest.

“You do a film and you know where you're going, you have this material to stretch and play with as much as possible because you know how it ends." - Norman Reedus

Life is harder than a movie, because we aren’t exactly sure of the ending. And thus the challenge is learning to stretch and grow beyond what we know we can do and accomplish what we dream we can do. When it comes to design, my first instinct is at times more commercial. And yet I listen to other ideas and try to wipe clean my preconceived notions of what’s beautiful, and all of a sudden my eyes are opened to something new. And before long I’m walking around in a gold heel without batting an eyelash.

It’s hard to stretch ourselves, especially with the demands of being a woman and mother and friend and lover. I might step away from a design meeting to take a call from an overseas factory, only to be interrupted by my son who wants a hug or the thought of what to cook for dinner since my grandmother who is coming over. It’s a constantly evolving game, this life. We must adapt and grow and patiently wait for the right timing of things, despite not knowing the ending, and despite not knowing how long we even have left.

The modern-day women simply must learn to stretch in life. There are so many roles we play that we have to broaden our boundaries and learn to let more in. I like to surround myself with people that think differently and yet respect each other, and I like to work in a way where everyone is valued for what they bring to the table. And sometimes, it’s about forgiveness when you stretch to the point of breaking, and you must back down. I wish we knew the ending at times, but then again, what would be the fun in that?

“God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.” - Voltaire

Just recently I was in New York waiting on a car to be pulled up to the curb where I was standing. A man parked close to the spot I was guarding and we struck up a conversation. After some time of small talk, he shook my hand with a vigorous energy. He told me the city had a way of hardening folks, and no one looks anyone in the eye anymore. He told me that my smile was genuine, and that it brightened up his day in a way that he didn’t expect.

That stuck with me. It made me want to write it down and look at it periodically when I get busy or distracted. It’s a lesson that we don’t just live this life to win, or to make money, or to watch movies on Friday nights. We live for a short time with a purpose- driven goal. Do good, do it with intention, and don’t miss an opportunity to touch someone's heart.

I know a lot about “riches”. In my small way I’ve lived it and breathed it and then I knew what it was like to have nothing at all. True wealth doesn’t derive itself from things that can be burned to the ground, but in health, and family, and lifelong friendships. No one can take these from you even when they leave, for they are forged in your soul forever.

My goal when starting this company was more than designing a smart pair of boots or sandals. My goal was to share a sense of peace, and nomadic feeling of wonder, and love of beauty and design, with everyone I am in contact with. God drives this truck I’m sitting in, just a small-town girl full of baggage and fear and doubt, and tells me to buckle up as I go headfirst into foreign territory. I want to live a life of purpose because I see no other alternative that makes sense. I hope that you can feel this love in my products, and my staff, and in everything this brand is connected to. I hope you choose to love, and rise above your current circumstances, and really live the life you imagined.

“We are told to let our light shine, and if it does, we won’t need to tell anybody it does. Lighthouses don’t fire cannons to call attention to their shining – they just shine.” -Dwight L. Moody

When I thought about launching a company designed around women, about the richness and quality of footwear combined with the power and confidence of a woman’s heart, it was a shining moment. I have always wanted to illuminate rather than be a spotlight – to let my life speak for itself. In all things, whether it is our responsibility to our family and our neighbors or in the quiet unknown places and moments when no one is looking, I have wanted to be a bright light to those around me. And when you pull on my shoes and set out in this wild life adventure, I want you to love yourself. To smile and walk swiftly toward the direction of your dreams.

My son, Cole, started a lemonade stand over the summer. He was relentless. Every person that neared our home wasn’t allowed to pass without buying a glass. Finally, when I suggested that he might be a bit overzealous, he said he was earning enough money to buy a special present for his cousins who were coming soon to visit. Earning money to give away, to bless, and to shine the light of generosity.

I see you all you women out there in my mind when I’m designing and sketching, leaning on bikes and walking down the sidewalk or eating gelato with girlfriends. I want you to feel powerful, and confident, and brilliant. I want you to work toward a higher calling, and to never give up on your dreams. I want you to work for good, and pursue compassion, and to be overzealous in love.

When I was eight years old, I begged my mom to take me to the craft store. I had become proficient at making friendship bracelets to sell to my classmates and give to my friends. For what or how much I earned, I cannot recall. But I remember the thrill of creating, and sharing that creation with those people I cared about.

For me, creation is not about how much profit is attached to it. It’s about designing dreams, and sorting out chaos. It’s about a swirling mass of color and confidence and beauty that cannot be ignored. I have a need to release it sometimes, like a bird that needs to be free of the nest. I have a desire to share this vision with other women, to encourage them to be the best women they can be.

I want people to create things. To use the tools they have to express emotion and joy. We might not all be born to do great things, as Mother Teresa says, but we can certainly do small things with a great amount of love. We can use our hands and our hearts to give and mold and share. We can give a bracelet and remember the look on our friend’s face as she wear it. As I sit by the fire and sketch a design, or see a shape, or feel the swallowing sounds of music pulse in my veins, I know it’s something I can’t help. I am born to create. To see the creativity around me in this great world. To be free.

You might not be a sculptor, or an artist in the traditional sense, but you can always create something out of nothing. You have the power to design your own life. Don’t sit around. Pull on your boots and make something happen.

“Can you see air you breathe? Can you see the force that moves the tides or changes the seasonsor sends the birds to a winter haven?" Her eyes welled. "Can Rome with all its knowledge be so foolish? Oh Marcus, you can't carve God in stone. You can't limit him to a temple. You can't imprison him on a mountaintop. Heaven is his throne; earth, his footstool. Everything you see is his. Empires will rise and empires will fall. Only God prevails.” ― Francine Rivers, A Voice in the Wind

I read A Voice in the Wind years ago, but the story of a young servant girl’s incredible heart and will to bring faith to her captors was forever seared into my own identity. It was a reminder that in the worst of circumstances there was a greater calling, and a higher purpose, and that we could walk boldly in the direction of our dreams.

I’ve been inspired by many things, but as Francine Rivers best explains, I am most touched by the beauty that surrounds me. The hillsides of Tuscany and the streets of Rome are clearly magnificent, but so is the look in my mother’s eye when I make her proud, or the tussled hair of my son after a day playing in sprinklers. And when I started my own company, seeing how to place love into the very curves of leather, I knew at that moment I was living out my passions.

I once worked for my dear friend who is a successful jewelry designer, and as I handed her a design idea she’d look at it and trust her instincts about how it could be tweaked, or changed, and she’d sit down armed with beads and pliers and began twisting and curving the wire and allowing herself to utilize the very force within her. I learned a great deal during that time in my life to trust my gut, and trust that my instincts are rarely wrong.

You can’t see the air you breathe but you know it’s there, and you can’t always see a higher power but you can feel His presence. I know in my heart that this company and these boots will change the world of women’s boots, allowing for creativity and style to be meshed with personality and quality. It’s my dream that we can all walk proudly forward in the direction our own heart is leading.

"There is in every true woman's heart, a spark of heavenly fire, which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity, but which kindles up and beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity." -Washington Irving

I am not a big fan of shouting. Anyone who knows me knows that I’m a rather chilled-out type, and don’t get worked up easily. I absorb beauty and stress and energy in fairly the same way, and I always believe that a glass of wine and a long talk with a friend far exceeds a thousand parties.

But don’t confuse being laid-back with being safe. I know how to be bold and fiery when the need arises. I searched for a long time before I read about Tonya Hawkes, our main designer for Lisa Lecroy. I trusted my gut, and shocked her by flying to Italy and meeting her at the leather fair, and boldly approached her about leading up our boot designs. And yet I didn’t do it by yelling, or being forceful, but by allowing the beauty of these boots to shine before me, and allowing my vision to be clearly and succinctly stated in a way that kindled up energy and warmth. And she agreed. Thank heavens, because I could never have done it on my own.

In my life I’ve always felt that women should be like slow-burning fire, always releasing heat but shining more brightly in the darkness. That’s what I want this company to be to the world – always beaming and blazing in the face of adversity. I want women who wear these boots to walk tall and stand firm and calmly but boldly walk toward the direction of their dreams.

I also hate the imagery of a “flash in the pan,” like a moment of flame that never lasts. I worked hard to create timeless boot bases that can work for any season, and worked with materials that wouldn’t wear down and fade out with the seasons and passing fashion. I want my products to be timeless, not yelling and screaming at the world, saying “Look at me!” but rather having all heads turn as Lisa Lecroy boots go walking by, radiating with the slow burn of beautiful.

"Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut, that held its ground." - David Icke

There is a massive 400-year-old oak tree in the back yard of our family home, with chairs and a rock patio underneath. I love to sit under those branches, and wonder who came before me and rested their feet under this same tree. I like to wonder, and day dream, and look around our acreage with gratitude that I live in such a peaceful place.

My life is very busy – I am either rushing off to New York or across the ocean to Italy or even back and forth from shows around the state. But I have to find the time to slow down, and unwind, and put my children to bed as often as possible.

My favorite thing in the world is to have my boys on either side of me in bed, reading and sharing stories. I like to really listen to them about the goings-on in their little worlds, and their struggles, and while one likes to be tickled and hugged the other just wants a moment in this crazy world to be really heard.

Sometimes my husband and I just pack up the jeep, throw food in a cooler, and drive. We head to Bear Creek where the water is cool and the swimming holes aren’t too deep. We sit and laugh and splash and try to relish in the quiet. This is what living is about, between the chaos and cacophony of life. This is when I refuel, and recharge, and build my best memories.

Don’t get me wrong – there’s a time and place for going fast, but it doesn’t mean it has to be your go-to speed all the time. I have built my own company one brick at a time, one boot design at a time, and one re-edited and reviewed contract at a time. It’s stepping one foot in front of the other without panicking about the setbacks, and knowing when to kick off your shoes and wiggle.

"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul." - John Muir

When I was a kid, my girlfriend Laura would come over and we’d play Cowboys and Indians with my brothers. We lived on acres of land and would always find a way to build a very strong fort. My friend and I would take turns being the damsel in distress and the rest would find a way to save the princess. Afterward, all hot and sticky with Texas heat, we’d head inside and raid the pantry for Little Debbie snacks – swiss rolls, preferably, and life was so utterly satisfying.

Playing is such a natural part of life. When I was in Madrid, I met up with seven men from Mexico and they acted as my personal bodyguards throughout the city. We played and laughed and I’ll never forget those carefree weeks of exploration in a foreign land. So much to see, so much great food and architecture – it was my very own play land.

As we grow up, sometimes we consume ourselves with so much work that it’s hard to keep our minds open to imagination, and play. It’s not always easy to head down to the river for an afternoon of inter-tubing, or exploring a new hiking trail, and yet in my life that is what I must do in order to stay sane. I’ve traded in pop guns and headdresses for trees and rivers and valleys of the Texas Hill Country. The cobblestones and the lamps and the arches of Venice – this is also the playground in which my mind soars.

We can play while we work, and as we build relationships, and as we design. We should always maintain hearts at play while also at work, so our days don’t grow dull and our minds lazy. And after all – who doesn’t like a good swiss roll?

Let me introduce myself...I am Lisa and I’m a wife, mother, friend, daughter, entrepreneur and lover of all things to do with living a good life. I want to share with you my journey into the great world of fashion. I am an outsider trying to find my way...It hasn’t been an easy road, but who said it would be.

My journal will give you a glimpse into my life and who I am. I’m obviously not a celebrity or well known designer with a built in fan base, but I believe in what I am doing and want to share it with the world. I know once you discover the beautiful designs and see the value of the Lisa LeCroy brand you will fall in love...or at least that is my hope.

Life is a journey and by sharing my story and life with you I would love to inspire you to follow your dreams. Take a risk and go down that unknown road and live your life to the fullest!